On October 16, 2026, state media quoted Politburo Member Nguyen Thanh Nghi as saying: After 20 years of implementing the policy allowing party members to engage in private business, the number of party members directly involved in business activities has increased more than fivefold, officially reaching 187,000.
The figure of nearly 200,000 CPV members engaged in private enterprise—that is, participating in this exploitation—immediately raises sharp questions regarding both political theory and practical governance in Vietnam under a totalitarian one-party political system.
Public opinion raises a question: Is the CPV—a political organization that represents the working class and the interests of the working people—now trending toward transforming itself into a “party of exploiters”?
According to analysts, the assertion that the Communist Party of Vietnam is trending toward becoming an “exploitative party”—if viewed solely through the lens of Marxist-Leninist economic theory—is somewhat one-sided and inaccurate.
The policy allowing party members to engage in private economic activities was first introduced by Decision No. 15/QĐ-TW in 2006, and most recently, Party Regulation No. 224 has officially legalized and expanded the right of party members to legitimately accumulate wealth.
This is viewed as a theoretical breakthrough aimed at dismantling old ideological prejudices, thereby maximizing productive capacity and mobilizing the managerial capabilities of Party members toward the nation’s development.
Within the “Socialist-oriented” market economy model, the 187,000 Party members engaged in economic activities are directly contributing to the creation of surplus value and providing employment for millions of workers.
At the same time, they serve as a dynamic productive force rather than merely engaging in exploitative practices. However, the greatest and most dangerous challenge is the risk of the formation of a “crony capitalist” class and “interest groups,” along with the phenomenon of policy exploitation.
When a party member holds political power or possesses privileged connections within the state apparatus while also operating a private enterprise, the goal of maximizing profits for their “backdoor” businesses becomes commonplace.
According to experts in public administration, to control this risk of corruption, the current legal system is proactively establishing extremely strict safeguards.
Regulation 224 clearly defines limits for each group of party members and strictly prohibits officials under the management of the Politburo and the Secretariat from investing in or establishing economic organizations.
Furthermore, from a legal perspective, the Law on Prevention and Combating Corruption, the Law on Officials and Civil Servants, and the Law on Enterprises, among others, have all tightened regulations prohibiting civil servants from establishing businesses or allowing relatives to engage in business activities within the scope of their direct management.
However, it is still necessary to require Party members working in the public sector to maintain a complete and transparent separation between state assets and their personal business activities.
Vietnam’s caution becomes even more evident when compared to the current governance model of the Communist Party of China.
While Beijing, having adopted the “Three Represents” theory since 2001, has proactively admitted tycoons and business magnates into the CPC and established Party branches directly within private conglomerates as a means of controlling power,
Vietnam, on the other hand, has chosen an approach based on managing actual conflicts of interest. Accordingly, Vietnam encourages Party members to engage in economic activities to develop the country, but remains resolute in upholding its working-class foundation. It absolutely refuses to allow Party members to become an exploitative bourgeois force.
In summary, if the issue of Party members engaging in private economic activities is not controlled, the legitimacy and representativeness of the CPV on behalf of the working class will fail to uphold the principles of the Party Charter and the provisions of the Constitution.
Trà My – Thoibao.de
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How is the CPV managing this transformation to avoid becoming an “exploitative party”?
“… The Party is managing the risk posed by 187,000 party members who may become ‘exploiters’ through private economic activities by tightening controls on conflicts of interest and prohibiting public-sector officials from establishing ‘backdoor’ businesses.”
#Vietnam #VietnamPolitics #Thoibao
